Possibility: Gina
by Mystic83
Summary: What if Gina freed herself from the prison of Pegasus? What if Baltar enlisted Apollo’s help in getting her to the relative safe haven of Galactica? GinaApollo


**This will be a series of stand-alone stories which deal with the choices that the characters on Battlestar Galactica have made throughout the first half of the second season (I'll be posting in as much of the order of the season as I can). I want to explore what would have happened/changed if things had gone differently. Some of the stories will be angst, some will be shippy, some will be funny. There will be different pairings throughout. Don't feel like you have to check out each one to understand the others. All I ask is that if it intrigues you, then give it a try. Hope you enjoy reading the stories as much as I enjoyed writing them!**

**

* * *

**

_**There are pivotal moments in one's life where if you take the wrong path everything may change. Those changes may be for the good or for the bad. The possibilities are endless.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Gaius Baltar stared at the woman balled up at his feet. She looked so much like the woman he loved that it scared him. He was having a hard time remembering this Gina had no connection to him. "I can't kill you," he whispered. "I'm sorry. No matter how many times you ask, I cannot kill the woman I love."

"I'm not her," Gina hissed, glaring up at him. "I've told you that time and again."

"That doesn't change anything."

Gina shook her head and slowly dragged herself to her feet. "You know, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were on the Cylons' side."

"The _Cylons_' side? You say that as if you're not a part of it."

"I'm not."

"What about your faith?"

"I gave up on the god of the Cylons the second I realized I was trapped in this hell. There is no one out there watching over me, Gaius. I'm on my own." Gina's look turned from anger to pleading. "I just want it to be over. I'm tired of being on my own."

"You have me," Baltar insisted.

"You're not good enough. You can't even figure out a way to help me."

Her words struck Baltar to the core. They were a reflection of everything he had been told since the Twelve Colonies had been destroyed. He was never good enough, not for the people on Galactica and certainly not for this Admiral Cain woman. Six reminded him at every turn the mistakes he was making. Now this Gina woman, who was dangling so close to the edge, even she saw his complete lack of use.

"There is something I can do," Baltar said, after a moment. He prayed to whomever was listening, be it god or gods, that this wasn't a huge mistake. "It's not the death you want, but it is a solution."

Gina continued to stare at him, the expression on her face unyielding.

"You need to get off this ship." He had expected a reaction from her, but when she started laughing uncontrollably, it took him by surprise. "I'm serious. If you go to _Galactica_, things will be better."

"I'll still be in a cage. I'll be alive. What's the good in that?"

"You will be safe from harm. As much as it pains me to say it, the people on _Galactica_ are, by their nature, good. They may keep you in a cell, but you will have food. You will be allowed to recover, and from there, we'll see what I can do."

Gina shook her head. "You're wrong. I am their enemy. There is no way they'd treat me with any sort of respect."

"There's already another one of you on board. Sharon Valerii. They keep her alive because she's valuable to them. You can be valuable, too."

Gina looked down at the bruises on her hands, and Baltar could see she was torn. She wanted to believe him. She wanted there to be someone she could trust, but it was just too hard for her to accept. She was the enemy. Common sense would say she was a dead man walking.

Baltar watched as the little emotion she had slowly melted off her face. It was replaced with a sort of determination. Staring at him, she shrugged. "All right then."

"All right?"

"I want to see if you can actually pull this off." Gina walked over to the other side of the cell and sat down. "Now I've hope you've put a lot of thought into getting me off this ship. It's not going to be easy."

"I know that," Gaius insisted as his heart dropped out. He really hadn't thought this out. "Now if you excuse me, I should get started."

Gina watched him step out of her cell and into the corridor before a small smile came across her lips. It was the closest she could come to laughter. Dr. Gaius Baltar could not get her more than ten feet from this cell without being discovered. He didn't have the mind to plan out something as complicated as kidnapping a Cylon prisoner. It would take someone with knowledge of the military they would be evading and with a certain ability to think outside the box, and as far as she knew, there was no Cylon sympathizer like that.

At least she could count on one thing. This stupid plan of his was liable to get her killed, and that was _exactly_ what she wanted.

* * *

Gaius Baltar leaned against the corridor wall. He had no clue how large of a mess he had just gotten himself into. He was in charge of taking a military prisoner and making them disappear from one Battlestar to the other without anyone taking notice. Not to mention the only reason this was happening was because this Gina reminded him of the woman he loved. 

He was cursing himself for letting his hormones take over his brain yet again when he heard a hatch door slam a little ways down the corridor. He looked up to see Captain Lee Adama stepping out of one of the brig cells. Baltar watched the ex-CAG of Galactica as he carried on a conversation with the Marines surrounding him. It seemed the good Captain had taken the time to visit the two imprisoned men from Galactica.

"That man has an insane sense of duty," Baltar scolded. Chief Tyrol and Helo were not Apollo's problem now that he was just another pilot onboard Pegasus, and yet Captain Adama felt the need to do all he could to keep them alive. "Idiot."

Baltar continued to watch the younger Adama as his conversation with the Marines heated up, and an idea sparked in his head. He was never good at solving problems outside his realm of expertise, but he had to admit this was brilliant. Staring at Apollo, he could finally see a way out of his little predicament with Gina. It wasn't the best notion he had ever had, but it was all he could think of.

He waited until Lee was done arguing with the Marines before speaking up. "Captain Adama? Can I have a word?"

Lee narrowed his eyes and hesitantly walked over to where Baltar stood. "What can I do for you, Doctor?"

"There's someone I'd like you to meet."

"I don't have time right now to go on a social call."

Baltar's arm shot out to grab Lee as he moved to walk past him. "Please, Captain. The Admiral has me working on a secret project as you know, and it's gotten a little out of control. I need your opinion as a military man."

Lee looked him over for a second before nodding. This didn't feel like his normal encounters with Baltar. The man in front of him looked like he was the verge of a nervous breakdown, and for some reason, Lee was finding his odd behavior different than anything he had ever seen from the Doctor. There was no mumbling and no staring off into space. Instead, Baltar just looked downright terrified.

When he was sure he had Lee's attention, Baltar turned without a word and punched in the access code to the cell behind him. The hatch slid open, and both men stepped in. Baltar watcged Lee pause as he tried to take in what he was seeing. "This is the Pegasus Cylon prisoner, their Boomer if you will," Gaius supplied. "She was a part of their crew, a member of the communications team. Like Sharon, she sat by their side every day. Unlike Sharon, they found her out before she could fulfill her mission."

Lee took a hesitant step towards the glass. It seemed his curiosity was spiked. "What was her mission?"

"She hasn't told anyone. I don't think she's going to either." Baltar let out a sigh. "I have been trying to get her to give me information for days. That's the job Admiral Cain assigned me. She wants to know her enemy. All Gina wants is to die."

"Gina?"

"Petty Officer Gina Williams."

"She had a name and rank?"

"I don't identify myself by that name for any reason other than convenience," Gina said, stepping closer to the glass divide. "And you shouldn't talk about someone when they can hear you. It's rude." She cocked her head as she took in Lee's presence. "You're the Commander's son."

Lee's eyes stayed locked with her as he asked, "Why am I here, Doctor?"

"Gina is an asset to the Fleet in a way that Sharon Valerii could never be. She is a Cylon who has lost her faith but not her connection to the whole. Her people lied to her and abandoned her. She wants to help."

"Don't lie for me, Gaius," Gina said. Her eyes fell down to look at the floor. Lee was still staring at her, and it was starting to make her uncomfortable.

"What happened to her?" Lee asked.

"Your people wanted to show me who was in control," Gina replied, even though he wasn't asking her. "They beat me to within an inch of my life, and then they tied me up. They forced their bodies on me, passing me around like I was some kind of trophy. Then, they weren't even man enough to finish the job and let me die. They just let my body heal and then started all over again."

"I know she's the enemy, Captain, but there is no way we can let this kind of thing keep happening."

"He wants you to help him move me from one ship to another," Gina explained. She felt her knees begin to give out. It surprised her that her strength had lasted this long. She wished there was some way to get away from prying eyes of Adama's son. For some reason, she didn't like the idea of falling apart in front of him. "He's not going to help you on your little quest to save me, Gaius. He has too much loyalty to his people, and he doesn't care what they did to me."

"Stop calling them my people," Lee growled. "The people on this ship are nothing like me."

"They're human," Gina insisted. "That's enough." She bit back a cry of pain as her right knee buckled.

Lee showed no reaction as he watched the machine in front of him practically crumple to the ground. "What makes you think she'd have it any better on Galactica?"

"It can't be any worse than what's she already faced." Baltar shifted to stand beside Lee. "I'm not asking much of you, Captain. I just need your help securing transport for her to Galactica. I believe I can convince both the President and the Commander of the wisdom in keeping Gina around. I just need to get her away from this ship first."

Lee glanced over at Baltar out of the corner of his eyes before looking back at the woman crumpled up before him. "I could be risking my whole career by helping you."

"I realize that, and I also realize you have every reason to say no to me. There's no one else I can ask. The pilots on Pegasus aren't going to want to let her go, and Lieutenant Thrace is too high profile for me to go to. You're the only hope I have."

Lee turned to look at the man next to him. "This Cylon means a lot to you."

"I am a Doctor. I took an oath which says I cannot stand by and let this kind of thing happen even if she is our enemy."

"You're not that kind of doctor, Doctor," Lee pointed out before looking back down at this Gina woman. She was crumpled up on the ground, her legs locked tight against her. Her face was inches from the glass, and he could see her body rocking gentle to the silent rhythm inside. It was textbook acute stress disorder.

Lee knew he would be stupid _and _crazy to do what Baltar was asking. After all, he had no sympathy for the Cylons, not after what they did to his father. Plus, if what Baltar was saying was true, this model had none of the morals, be they slightly-fraked up, that Galactica's current Cylon prisoner was displaying. She knew who she was and that didn't matter. She just wanted to die.

Lee crouched down closer to the ground. He knew he should just take his gun and put her out of her misery. She wants to die, and it was his job to kill Cylons. Not too many people would take offense to that. He was about to stand up and tell Baltar he couldn't help him when Gina's eyes came up to meet his.

The look reflected in her eyes tore him in two.

There was a sort of desperation to her that he hadn't noticed before. He had gotten caught up on the bruises and the cuts which scarred almost every inch of her skin. He hadn't seen what was bubbling under the surface. It was a reflection of something he had seen every day for the past few months.

"Frak. You're exactly like me, aren't you?" he whispered, moving his hand to rest against the glass. The similarities frightened him. They were both living in a world they didn't belong to. They were locked into a life not of their choosing. Their faith had abandoned them to find their own way to survive. "Most days, I would give anything to die." He wasn't sure why he said that.

Gina stared at him for a moment before moving to lightly touch the glass where his hand was. She wasn't sure why he was addressing her now. All she knew was something had shifted in him, and for a moment, she had hope again.

Lee cleared his throat and stood up. He had made his decision. "I'll help you, Doctor."

Baltar was taken aback, but he did his best to recover. "Thank you, Captain. I'll let you know when I've rounded out the other parts of my plane."

Lee ignored him, his eyes still locked on the fallen machine. "We leave in an hour. I'll be able to secure a Raptor by then. Stay here with her. I'll come get you when it's time." Without waiting to hear Baltar agree, he turned and left the prison cell.

Baltar turned to look over at Gina and was surprised to see she had gotten up and move to the other end of the cell. He had a feeling, like always, he had just missed something incredibly important.

* * *

Baltar had done his best to prepare himself and Gina for whatever Lee Adama intended. He hated that he had no clue what was going to be asked of him in the next few hours almost as much as he hated not being able to come up with something on his own. Back on Caprica, he had been hailed as one of the greatest minds of their time. In this crumbling Fleet, he was seen as an eccentric little man who had no idea what he was talking about. That was a huge oversight on their part because he knew a thing or two about strategy. For instance, he knew they shouldn't be sitting around, waiting for the right moment. It was a time for action. 

Another thing he wasn't too happy with was how in the dark he felt. He knew he should have insisted he be given more details into this little escape attempt the Captain had in mind. He shouldn't have given Apollo all the power, but there was really no way to go back and change that now. All he could was prepare.

"You look nervous, Gaius."

Gina's words startled him. She hadn't spoken since Apollo had left them an hour earlier. "I think I have a right to be nervous," he insisted, turning to look over at where she leaned on the wall. She was dressed in the military issued garments he had stolen for her earlier that day. If her hair wasn't so matted and unclean, she could easily pass for one of the crew.

"The worse that can come of this is I get shot. You can tell the Admiral that I threatened you. You're not military. You got scared. Everything will work out in the end."

Baltar's face filled with confusion. For the first time, she was speaking in that cool, clear tone he had always associated with Six. It was almost as if finally she understood the power she had over him. "Do you really want to die that much?"

The question would hang between them unanswered since Lee chose that time to interrupt their conversation. Baltar wanted to laugh. It seemed like Captain Adama was always in the wrong place at the right time.

"We have about ten minutes until the next guard of Marines shows up. Let's go."

"Nice to see you, too, Captain," Baltar said. He reached out to touch Gina's arm lightly. "Are you ready to go?"

She stiffened for a moment but nodded. Baltar realized with a start that Gina was nervous. She had just criticized him for his fear, and the second Apollo shows up, her whole demeanor changed. It was incredibly confusing to him.

"Where are we going?" Baltar asked as they stepped into the corridor.

"I'm assigned to a Raptor scouting mission in about an hour. I should be going through pre-flight right now with my ECO. They won't even notice the ships flying off the books until we're already home."

"Home?" Gina whispered. "You really consider a ship in the middle of space home?"

"It's all I have since your people destroyed everything I loved," Lee growled. He surged a few steps ahead of them, and Baltar had to pick up his pace.

"About your ECO, Captain," Baltar said. "I doubt he's going to be happy with this little side trip. Have you thought about that?"

"He's currently unconscious in a locked equipment locker. It appears like he had a little too much ambrosia and accidentally hit his head on a hatch door." Lee's eyes locked on a few crewmen coming their way and motioned for his two companions to turn right. Together they stepped into the new corridor and continued on their way to the Raptor. "We have to avoid as many people as we can. A few seconds of attention is all we can afford before they start to pick up on the fact that what we're doing is a little odd."

"You mean you walking a known Cylon through the corridors of the ship holding her captive?" Baltar asked.

"No, I mean, me walking besides a man I can't even stand to be in the same room with," Lee corrected smugly. He was surprised to hear a small chuckle from Gina.

Their progress was slow due to the multiple detours and turns they were forced to make, but Lee could feel them getting closer. Each step they took, he found himself doubting his choice. He really had no idea why he had agreed to Baltar's ridiculously insane idea. He owed nothing to this Gina woman. They had shared one moment of understanding. That's all.

"Keep up," Lee hissed as they made the last turn. When no one responded, he turned to see Gaius doing his best to drag Gina the last few yards. Lee cursed himself for losing sight of the situation. This Cylon woman hadn't been able to stand for more than a minute. Why had he expected her to walk all the way to the hangar bay? She had already been through so much pain, and here he was pushing her to go through even more. Who was he to demand so much of her?

More importantly, why did he care?

"I'm not going to make it," Gina called out to him. "Just leave me here before someone figures out you've helped me."

Lee jogged back to where Gaius was struggling to hold up Gina's weight. He pulled them both into an open hatchway and took a moment to stare at the fallen woman in front of him. He didn't have any other option. "We can't turn back now. If you're found running free, Admiral Cain will not stop until she knows how that came to be. She will make an example out of those involved."

"She's not going to kill us," Baltar insisted.

Lee narrowed his eyes at Baltar. What ship did he think he was on? Admiral Cain was capable of anything, even murder. "Don't worry. You'll be forgiven. You're only a civilian caught up in a son's desire to exact revenge for his father's fall from power."

"I didn't realize you had so much wrapped up in this," Gina admitted after a moment of awkward silence. This young Captain could be killed simply for having a desire to do what any true child of God would. His need to stop the injustice done to her was going to be his last act.

Lee shrugged. "Me, either. I guess this was a shitty time to start following my gut."

"Not to interrupt this fine moment the two of you are having, but when the frak are we going to get off this ship?" Baltar yelled.

"Right now," Lee insisted. He started walking and was relieved to see Baltar immediately slip his arm under Gina to help her along. They just might make it out of this one yet. "You have to make this convincing. Don't stand out too much."

"I don't think that's an option," Baltar stated. "She can barely walk, and a man of my distinction will not go unnoticed especially when he has a Cylon leaning on him. There's no way around it, Captain. We are going to be noticed. Since you seem to be fabulous at making plans, any suggestions on how to fix that?"

Lee shut his eyes for a moment before halting in front of the hangar doors. He turned to Baltar and asked, "Do you know how to open the ramp on a Raptor?"

Baltar rolled his eyes. He had been stuck on Galactica for months with no real purpose. His only reprieve from the monotony of military life was the frequent trips to Colonial One necessitated by his Vice Presidential status. Of course he had figured out how to open a stupid ramp. "You just press the button on the side, and poof, it opens. I'm not an idiot, Captain."

Lee stared at him a moment, almost as if he was debating Baltar's point, before he nodded. "Good. That's your job."

"And what will you be doing?" Baltar asked.

"Something you're not man enough to try," Lee whispered as he pushed past Baltar to scoop Gina up into his arms. "Now let's go before I change my mind and shoot you both dead."

Baltar felt his whole body tense as he watched Gina simply settled into the young Captain's arm. This was a woman who had cringed when he touched her cheek. He had thought she would fight this little loss of control, but instead she looked at ease.

Grimacing, Baltar shuffled behind Lee as they made their way across the hangar. People did turn to look at them, but Gina's head was curled against Lee's chest enough to keep her identity hidden for just as long as necessary. Baltar pushed the ramp open, and Lee immediately dropped Gina into the co-pilot chair.

"Is it wise to put me here?" Gina asked Lee as he raised the ramp back up.

"Frak with this Raptor and you're dead," Lee growled, taking his seat in the pilot's chair. "Dr. Baltar, you can take a seat in the ECO's position. I might need you to relay some of the readouts to me."

"Plus I'm effectively out of the way," Baltar grumbled softly to himself.

"Don't be jealous, Gaius."

He stiffened at Six's voice. She had been out of his reach since the second Gina accepted his offer to get her off Pegasus. It was odd that she would chose now to appear. "I'm not jealous. I just don't want to give the Captain an opening in which he can shoot you."

"That's not me," Six reminded him. "As I keep telling you, that's not the woman you love. You really need to start gaining some distance."

"You wanted me to save her, to risk my life and my career to get her away from this place, and now I'm supposed to back off? She's going to be in just as much danger on Galactica."

"No, she'll be okay," Six said with a smile. "God is still watching over her."

"Doctor!" Lee's voice snapped Baltar back into the present. "Would you please tell me the vector codes on the screen in front of you?"

Baltar relayed the information before leaning back in the chair. Six was gone again.

"Pegasus, Apollo. I'm clear to launch."

"Apollo, confirmed. Estimated time of return three hours."

"Acknowledge. Apollo, away."

The Raptor launched into the space around Pegasus, and for the first few minutes, Apollo kept up the pretext of his mission. Then the ship veered out of the path and down towards where Galactica stood. "We'll be there within ten minutes," Lee informed them.

"What are you going to do with me?" Gina asked bluntly.

"Well, I'll just locate the Commander and explain the situation and how it could benefit him," Baltar answered.

"And then she gets shot in the head, effectively getting what she wanted in the first place," Lee interrupted. "If you want her to live, you can't just march her around Galactica." He turned to look at Gina. "_Do_ you want to live?"

"I'm curious to see if you can actually do this," she said cryptically.

"I really don't think I want to," Lee admitted, "but I'm in a little too far now."

"Do you have a plan?" Gina asked.

"I have a plan," Baltar interrupted. "I am the one in charge here."

"I don't want to die anymore," Gina said, rolling her eyes at Baltar. She turned back to Lee. "Do you have a plan?"

"I'm going to land the Raptor under the guise that I gave Doctor Baltar a ride back to his lab. He can figure out how to explain who you are. Most of Galactica have never seen you."

"Most?"

"There was another one of you here once," Baltar exclaimed. "Called herself Shelley Godfrey."

"There's a… difference in appearance, though. No one should put two and two together." Apollo paused to correct the Raptor's bearing. "There's an abandoned section of bunkrooms on Deck Five. Take Gina there, Doc. As soon as I've said hello to my father, I'll be done to make sure you made it okay."

"You don't have to do all of this," Baltar insisted. "I can handle it."

"You asked for my help before. I have a duty to finish the job." Lee sighed. He knew there was more to it than that, but he really didn't want to think about that right now. Instead, he just concentrated on flying the Fleet's second Cylon prisoner to her new home.

* * *

Lee leaned on the wall outside the hatchway to Bunkroom #106 on Deck Five. It was the only hatch that was closed. His arms were tightly crossed against him, and his eyes were glued to the floor. Lee was trying his best to figure out two things, what the frak he was doing here and how the frak had this whole thing happened. 

He was helping the one person in the Fleet that he really had no respect for hide a known enemy because she looked at him and he saw something familiar in her eyes. That was fraked up even for him.

Lee still wasn't sure if he was going to step into that bunkroom. Baltar has asked him to get Gina off Pegasus, and the Doctor was right in saying that should be where it ended. Lee had no obligation to help out now that the problem had moved to Galactica. In fact, there were lots of other things he could be doing.

There was a general unrest in his pilots and the pilots on Pegasus. Lee found it funny that he couldn't seem to give up the bonds he had made with the people on his father's ship. There was a loyalty there he couldn't shake. As the old expression said, once a CAG, always a CAG. Lee found himself wondering if that was really true. It wouldn't be hard to test. All he had to do was wait until Kara did a normal Starbuck move and got demoted.

He was supposed to help Kara plan the big op Cain had assigned her as soon as he got back to Pegasus. It had been a simple thing to agree to earlier that morning, but he really wasn't in the mood anymore. Kara would see right through him. She would know he was holding something back, and he couldn't tell her about his part in moving Gina. She wouldn't understand.

Then again, maybe Kara was too preoccupied to care. After all, his own father hadn't noticed anything was different when he went to see him. Lee had hinted at the situation on Pegasus and what had happened to Gina, but his father didn't pick up on it. He was too busy focusing on the power struggle he was engaged in with the Admiral. For a man that wanted to reconnect with his son, his father was doing a piss poor job.

Lee leaned down to pick up the bag at his feet and let out a deep sigh. He had no clue why he was doing this.

The hatch slid open. Gina was leaning against the wall in one of the stripped down bunks, and Baltar was sitting on the table across from it, staring at her intently. Lee dropped the bag on the floor next to the bunk and moved to sit down.

Baltar's voice made him pause. "What do you think you're doing, Captain?"

Lee turned to look over at where Baltar had jumped to his feet. "Excuse me?"

"Gina is extremely skittish. She hasn't even let _me_ near her since I found this bunkroom. The last time she was like this she tackled me to the ground and tried to choke me. I'm just warning you for your own safety."

Lee looked down at the woman in question. Her knees were tucked against her body, and her chin was resting on top of them. It looked like she had fallen back into her shell in the hour he had been away. She didn't look unhinged to him, but it wasn't like he was an expert on Cylons. That honor would actually go to the man telling him that he should back off.

He was about to admit this was a mistake and turn around and leave when Gina looked up at him. There were those fraking eyes again. It wasn't like she was pleading with him to stay, and yet at the same time, she was asking him something. Her eyes were begging, and he knew he was going to stay. Sometimes, he really hated his mother for instilling this stupid sense of chivalry into him.

"Don't you need to be getting back to Pegasus?" Baltar asked, interrupting Lee's thoughts.

Lee narrowed his eyes. Baltar was becoming awfully insistent that he leave Gina alone. "I have a couple hours before I have to tell Pegasus my scouting run was a bust," Lee insisted.

"I wouldn't want to get you in trouble, though." Baltar's gaze flicked over Lee's shoulder as he realized that Six had found her way back into the room.

Six reached out to trail her fingers along Lee's shoulders. "You're being transparent, Gaius, dear," she teased.

"I just don't see your interest in all this, Captain Adama," Baltar said in response to Six's words. He glanced down at Gina who was doing her best not to look interested in the scene in front of her. She reminded him of Six more each second that they were together.

Lee could feel the resolve watch over him and knew he was in trouble. It was times like this that proved Kara was right in calling him a complete frak-up. "Can you field dress wounds, Doctor?" He waited for Gaius to shake his head. "Then I suggest you get out of my way and let me tend to this woman you seem to care for so much."

Baltar looked taken aback for a moment. "I do not think this is appropriate right now."

"Oh? You think it's inappropriate to bandage the wounds of a woman who has been physically and sexually abused?" As soon as Lee realized what he had said, he froze. He could feel Gina staring at him wide-eyed.

"I think you should proceed with a little more care than you're planning." Baltar very noticeably missed Lee's little slip-up and was rewarded with a small shake of the head by Six.

"No, it's all right, Gaius," Gina said. She quietly slid out from the bunk and stood beside him. "My wounds do need to be looked at, and we both know you're not qualified for that."

"And he is?" Baltar exclaimed. "He's not a doctor, you know! He's just a bloody military pilot."

"He's been trained in this, I'm sure." Gina gave him a small smile. "Now, Gaius, I agreed to go through this silly relocation plan of yours. The least you could do is grant me a small request."

Baltar's attention shifted over to Lee for a moment before he looked back over at her. "Whatever you want. I will do my best."

"I don't want you to see my wounds again." Gina looked down at her hands. "You've been so good to me. I want to spare you having to see them again."

"There's nothing to be ashamed of. You never asked for this." Baltar patted her arm a few times before turning to glare at Lee. "I understand how you wouldn't want those you care about to be in that position."

"Still, I would feel better if you were spared this."

"Anything you want," Gaius said with a smile.

Lee kept his eyes locked on the bunkroom wall until the hatch had shut behind Baltar. He took a deep breath, pushng the irritated look off his face, and picked the bag off the floor. He readied the supplies on the table and then turned to Gina. She was sitting in the bunk again, but this time she had a large grin on her face.

"Do you like how I did that?" Gina asked.

Lee took a seat on the bunk next to her. "Did what?"

"Got rid of him. I learned that from you or more specifically from humanity." Gina winced as Lee pressed disinfectant to the cuts on her head. "You are infinitely fascinating."

"Me or all of humanity?"

"Both," she answered honestly.

"You seem like you're doing better," Lee commented. She was still grinning at him, and he couldn't help but wonder if maybe that was why he was doing this. She seemed so human even though he knew she wasn't. It was hard to see a woman so weak and yet so strong as only a machine.

"Why are you helping me?" she asked as he continued to tend her wounds.

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do. You just don't want to tell me."

Lee narrowed his eyes and walked back over to the table. He wished that were the truth. Things would be simpler if he knew why he was helping the enemy.

"Usually men help me because of the way I look. It was that particular characteristic of humanity that made God create me. It's my job to exploit your weakness." Gina shook her head as Lee sat back down beside her. "I just can't figure out what made you help me. I haven't seen a mirror or a shower in weeks. I know I'm a mess."

The words slipped out before Lee could think better of it. "You're not looking that bad."

Gina smiled. "So it did have something to do with the way I looked?"

"No, that wasn't it," Lee insisted. His fingers grasped her wrist as lightly as he could manage, and he slowly began to wrap a bandages around the cuts and sores. "Maybe it was that way with Doctor Baltar, but I'm not that easily influenced."

"Then what was it?"

"Are you going to keep asking me until I tell you?"

"I'm curious by nature," Gina explained as Lee went to wrap her other wrist. "Speaking of, tell me about this Cylon traitor you're housing."

"Are you going to report back to your God?" Lee asked.

"Yes. As soon as you give me the information I'm seeking, my eyes will roll into the back of my head as I electronically communicate with my fellow machines. Then I will begin to shake as they force a download of my new mission into me." Lee stared blankly at Gina, not sure how to take her words. She watched him for a moment before shaking her head. "That was a joke. Nothing's that easy."

Lee stared at her for a moment longer before chuckling. "You know, it's really not smart to frak with the man who's fixing your wounds. Now let me see your ankles."

Gina shifted her legs up onto Lee's lap. She was finding this whole situation rather strange. She was aware of Lee Adama's story. The Cylons had shot his father point blank and poked around the insides of his almost sister-in-law. He should be feeling a lot of resentment toward her. Yet his hands were gentle as they wound bandages around her ankles where the restraints had rubbed away the skin. She was actually having a pleasant conversation with the one man who has reason to hate her kind.

"If you wanted to die, why didn't you just kill yourself?"

Lee's sudden words took her by surprise. He was still concentrating on her ankles, but she knew he was waiting for an answer. "Suicide is a sin to my people."

"That's a very simple answer."

Gina let his words sink in before she realized what he was implying. For whatever reason, he seemed to know there was more to the story than even Gaius knew. Even more strange than his intuition was the fact that Gina found herself compelled to explain. "I tried the first day after they found me out. I cut my wrists."

"I didn't see any sign of that."

"The scars blend in nicely with the others." Lee had finished with her ankles, but he hadn't pushed her away. She had a feeling he was curious, too. "I knew that killing myself would keep me from being reborn in another body, but after one day, I knew that eternal damnation would be a better end than being stuck on Pegasus. In the end, it was a mistake. Admiral Cain found out that I wanted to die so she had her men take me to within an inch of my life and pull back time and time again. I could practically taste the freedom. Death eventually lost its attraction. I didn't want to be reborn. I just wanted it to stop."

Lee shook his head. He could feel the anger boiling up inside of him. "Now you know how we feel. Your kind has been hunting us for months now. All we want is for it to stop, and all you can do is say that it's God's plan. I would love to meet this God of yours and ask him who the hell he thinks he is."

"You have no fraking clue what you're talking about, so don't just blindly lump me in with the people who are hunting you."

Lee watched her jaw tighten, and he could feel her holding herself back. If he didn't know better, he would think she was on the verge of taking a swing at him. Baltar must have been exaggerating when he said this woman begged him to shoot her. Gina might have a broken body, but her spirit was still there.

"I think your ribs are broken," Lee said, trying to focus on the reason he had come here in the first place. "I'm going to stabilize them as best I can. You might feel a little extra pressure, but in the end, it will help minimize the pain as you heal."

Gina gave him a small nod before unbuttoning the bottom of her shirt and lifted it up. Lee took the last bandage and began to slowly wrap it around her torso. He tried to ignore what were obviously cigar burns trailing up and down her stomach.

"Thank you for this," Gina said quietly.

Lee didn't know how to respond so he just focused on the job at hand. Silence hung between them uncomfortably as Lee thought about how his defenses were starting to slowly crumble. He had been drowning in the situation with the Cylons for so long. Up until a few hours earlier, things had been pretty black and white. If they were a machine, you shot them dead.

Now he didn't know which way was up. How was he supposed to hate someone who had been so violated by people exactly like him? And yet how could he not resent those men on Pegasus for doing this? He had no clue what this Gina had planned on doing before she was discovered.

"Who were you on the Pegasus?"

Gina didn't have to ask what he meant. "I was a member of the CIC. It was how I got my information."

"And you knew you were a Cylon?"

"I knew I had a purpose. I know I should probably lie to you about it, but I don't even care anymore. I had a mission to fulfill. When I was finished, I was promised I could be downloaded into a body that was far from the mess you people had created out here in the cosmos. The purpose kept me going. It kept me from dwelling on the fact that I was about to hurt people who considered me their friend." Gina reached across the bed to grab a discarded rubber band and pulled her hair back from her face. "The situation got complicated, and I'm almost glad they found me out before I was activated."

Lee watched Gina as she lost herself in thought. She looked a lot better now. It seemed Baltar must have found an empty head to let her get cleaned up in. With the bandages, she looked like just another pilot fresh out of sickbay. She even had a pilot's sensibilities. She had a mission, and she was willing to give her life to get it done. She checked her emotions and the relationships at the door because when it came down to it, nothing was as important as the mission.

Gina chose that moment to look up and smirk at him before looking down at her bandaged hands, and the resemblance suddenly clicked in his head. "You remind me of my best friend," Lee blurted out.

Gina's eyes rose to meet his, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. "You don't remind me of anyone I know."

Lee smirked. "That's because you only know eleven other people."

She looked shocked at first but then her whole body started to shake with laughter. No one had ever been so upfront about her being a Cylon without threatening her life. Through the tears, she saw that Lee was laughing. His words must have stunned him, too.

The laughter died down after a few moments, and she watched Lee's focus shift to her wrists. He had been so particular with her, so careful not to cause her pain. Humanity could be puzzling. "You love her, don't you?" Gina could see by the look on his face that Lee knew exactly who she was talking about.

"Yeah, I do."

"It must hurt to not have her feel the same."

Lee stood up off the bunk. Answering that question would probably take most of the night, and he wasn't sure that was the kind of conversation he should be having with a toaster. "My life has never been easy," he replied.

Gina nodded. "I know."

Lee's face paled at her words. "You know?"

Gina gave a small shrug. "All of this has happened before, and all of it will happen again."

"Not that cycle bullshit again. Kara told me how you guys like to spout that crap."

"It's the truth. We're already at the precipice."

Lee rolled his eyes. "Humanity is not dead yet."

"I wasn't talking about humanity." She waited until Lee's look of annoyance had filtered into one of curiosity before continuing. "There is an order to the way things happen. Until that order changes, the cycles will continue."

Lee stared at her a moment, trying to figure out what she was saying. When he realized it wasn't possible for him to comprehend, he sighed. "I need to get back to Pegasus." Gina gave him a small nod as his eyes held her for a moment too long. He had almost made it to the hatch before her voice called out to him.

"Lee?" He turned to see she had slid out of the bunk. "Will you come back to change the bandages?"

Lee paused before nodding and stepping out the hatch.

And with that decision, everything changed.

* * *

It was only a matter of time before hiding a Cylon became too hard. In the end, though, it was not politics or common sense that brought Gina to Commander Adama's attention. It was pure, unadulterated jealousy. 

Gina had been pushing Gaius Baltar away from the second she stepped on board Galactica. He had asked her why, but she simply said she was not the woman he loved. She spoke of a destiny not involving him. It only reminded Baltar more of Six.

It took Baltar over a month to realize that while Gina was pushing him away, she was letting Apollo come closer.

It was a particularly awkward passing in the empty corridor hall that finally sent Baltar over the edge. He had asked Lee why he kept coming to see Gina, and when the Captain wouldn't answer, Baltar lost it. He started demanding to know why Lee always seemed to have everything Baltar desired. Starbuck had been stolen right out from under him in the most humiliating way, and what Baltar had hoped to be a rather fruitful bedroom relationship had turned into one drunken frak. Then, the physical manifestation of the woman he had loved and lost showed up, and somehow she chose a man who inherently hated who she was instead of a man who loved her despite her true nature.

Baltar had simply walked away from that encounter and straight into the CIC to demand a meeting with Commander Adama.

Things moved fast, and within three hours, Gina had her own cell matching Boomer's, Baltar was being grilled by Colonel Tigh, and Commander Adama was having a rather surprising conversation with his son.

Gina sat in her cell for over ten hours without moving. She had made a decision and everything that was happening right now was a product of it. The Boomer model in the cell next to her hadn't said a word, and Gina thought that was for the best. They both had their own reasons for being prisoners of humanity, and it was important not to let those reasons mix.

There was a small commotion at the hatchway entrance to the holding room, and Boomer and Gina both stood up. Lee stepped into the room, and Gina saw a look of recognition flash across Boomer's face. She turned to Gina and shook her head. "I never would have guessed it would be you."

Gina gave her a small smile before shrugging. "I didn't even know until he helped bring me to Galactica."

Boomer held her gaze for a moment before stepping over to sit on the cot. She couldn't be a part of this if she wanted her baby to stay safe.

Gina stepped up to the glass and smiled at Lee. "Are they going to flush me out the airlock?"

Lee shook his head and motioned for the Marines to unlock the door. At her inquiring look, he shrugged. "Being the CAG has its privileges. I don't have to talk to you through a glass wall." He took her hand and walked her over to her cot. "I spoke with my father and President Roslin. They've agreed to hear you out."

Gina nodded. There was a lot she could tell these stragglers that would help them stay alive until the next cycle began. The prophecy of the continual cycles had always confused her. She could not understand how things could fit into the same mold over and over again, especially with this current cycle. Humanity was on their last leg. There was no way they could survive for much longer on their own.

"Do you think we can really do this, Lee?" Gina asked.

"I don't know. We have to try, though. If it means saving humanity, we have to try.'

The silence hung between them for a moment before it was interrupted by a rather angry scream.

"Lee Adama, you get your fraking ass out of that cell right now!"

Kara's voice made him flinch. He let go of Gina's hand and motioned for the Marines to let him out of the cell. He had hoped to have a little more time with Gina before Kara found out what was happening, but his luck had never been that good.

The second he was outside the cell, Kara's hands reached out to grab him by the collar and she dragged him into the corridor. Before he could realize what was happening, he was pressed up against the cold, metal wall and her fist had made contact with his jaw. Hunched over in pain, he did his best to block her knee as it connected with his stomach. He crumpled to the floor in pain. "Gods, Kara," he hissed.

"You are such a fraking screw-up!" she yelled.

Lee pulled himself off the ground and glanced around the corridor. Everyone was doing their best not to look directly at either one of them. "Can we not do this in front of everyone?" he asked.

Kara glared at him before pushing her way into an empty storage locker. The second the door clicked shut, she was raging at him again. "What were you thinking, bringing that thing onto our ship?"

"I guess the score's even now," Lee said. He dodged out of the way as she took another swing. "We're not going to get anywhere if you keep trying to beat me up, Kara."

"Well, it makes me forget what you did for a few seconds, so I'm not going to stop."

"I'm not going to apologize," Lee insisted.

"You're being completely selfish, Lee. You're putting yourself before the whole Fleet, and it's not like you." Kara's eyes narrowed. "Did she brainwash you?"

"Did Boomer brainwash Helo?" Lee spit back.

His words seemed to startle Kara, and she took a step back. "I just want to know how this happened."

"I can't even answer that, Kara. All I know is it was destined to be." Lee was surprised when Kara burst out laughing. "What?"

"You talking about destiny is just too weird. You're the guy who has had no belief in fate or the gods. You actually expect me to believe that destiny crap?"

"I know. You're the believer, and I'm the skeptic. That's the way it's always been."

"Until you had to go and frak it up," Kara pointed out. Lee could see the fight slowly drain out of her as she slumped against an equipment cabinet. "So, please, tell me why this had to happen, Lee."

"You believe in the prophecies. Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone to Caprica against my father's orders." Lee let out a sigh. "That's all this really is, Kara. The Cylons believe that everything has happened before…"

"…and everything will happen again. I know. I've heard their bullshit."

"It's not bullshit. It's the truth. Humanity exists in cycles of time. They are faced with the same choices as the Cylons. Each cycle, there's a pivotal moment of decision. Either the cycles can end or another one will begin. I made the decision this time, Kara." He watched her eyes drop to the ground, and he knew that he didn't have to explain what that decision was.

"Why wouldn't you want to end this?"

Lee sighed. This was the part that was going to hurt her. "There was nothing waiting for me at the end. If the Cylons are gone, then my life has no purpose. Think about it, Kara. I was a shell of anger and disappointment before they attacked. I was thinking of leaving the military behind. Then the Cylons showed up and suddenly I'm the CAG. I have a purpose. I have a family. IF the Cylons disappeared, then I'm lost again."

"You'd still have a family."

Lee shook his head. "My father would be gone within the first few years. The job of leading the Fleet is wearing on him."

"I'd still be here."

"You would be back on Caprica with the guy you still haven't told me about. Maybe you would even bring him back to the Fleet." Lee gave her a sad smile. "Like always, Kara, you would never be mine. It was both of our choice so I'm not going to blame you for that."

"You're not going to _blame_ me?" Kara exclaimed. "What the frak is that supposed to mean?"

"That Cylon told you that you were special, Kara, and you are. It was my decision whether to end the cycles, but you were the one responsible for helping me choose humanity. Humanity will live to see another cycle because of what I've done." Lee walked over to lean next to Kara. "Gina explained it to me. It is only through the choice of humanity over the fight the enemy offers that there will finally be freedom."

"That's from the Book of Pythia," Kara realized.

"If you and I had gotten over the past and actually let ourselves feel, my choice may have been different. I would have chosen to end this fight," Lee explained. His hand came up to rest on her shoulder. "That is the burden that you and I have to bear together."

"I can't deal with this," Kara said, pushing away. "I only have two real friends left, and they're both in love with Cylons. When the frak did my life become such a joke?"

Lee wished he knew what to say to her, but he couldn't think of anything to lessen the pain. "I'm sorry, Kara. I wish this could have happened differently."

"Can't you go back?"

The look of pleading in her eyes made Lee's heart break. "It would be a lie, Kara."

"So what happens now?"

"Now, I do my best to get the Fleet to listen to what Gina has to offer. She has a part to play in all of this."

"Besides fraking the Commander's son?"

"That was uncalled for," Lee hissed.

"I don't care," she said defiantly. "It's the truth."

Lee ignored her. "Gina can lead us to a new home where the Cylons can't reach us. Now that I made my decision, it's important humanity survive for the next cycle."

"Maybe we'll get it right this time," Kara said with a laugh as she pushed off the cabinet. She had the hatch open and was halfway out when she turned back to look at Lee. "It's never going to be the same between us, is it?"

Lee wished to the gods that he had the strength to lie to her, but in the end, he knew it would only hurt more. "I don't think so."

Kara stared at him before nodding. "That's what I thought."

Lee stared at the empty hatchway for a few minutes before moving out into the corridor. That had hurt a lot more than he could have imagined. It was his choice, though, and he couldn't take it back.

His feet led him back into the Cylon holding cells, and he wasn't surprised to see Helo already there. Lee walked over to the opposite cell and saw Gina was asleep on her cot. The past few hours had probably been pretty traumatic for her. She didn't know if she was going to live or die. Standing there, watching her, Lee knew without a doubt that his father and the President would accept her offer. Humanity would live for the next cycle.

"Do you understand now?"

Lee tensed at the sound of Helo's voice, but he didn't have to ask the Raptor pilot what he was talking about. "Is it always going to be this hard?"

"On a good day, you're going to want to just take a Raptor and leave everything behind. On the bad days, you think about ending it all." Helo smiled at Lee as the CAG finally looked over at him. "That won't change the fact that you can't leave her. Face it, Apollo. You're love's bitch just like me now."

Lee's eyes went wide before he let out a chuckle. It looked like he still had an ally, after all. "Do you think Kara will every forgive me?" he asked.

"I don't know. She forgave me, but I think she holds you to a different standard." Helo let out a sigh. "In the end, I don't think she could stay mad at you. There aren't that many people left for her to turn to."

"I didn't do this to hurt anyone. Hell, I didn't even know this was going to happen when I agreed to help Baltar get her off the Pegasus."

"If Cain finds out we have her on Galactica, it's going to be the end of us all."

Lee nodded. "We're going to have to break from Pegasus. Take the civilian ships with us and run. We'll have a destination, and we know that we don't need Pegasus to survive."

"You think they're really going to go for your crazy ass plan of redemption?" Helo asked.

"I don't think they have a choice." Lee's attention shifted back to the cell in front of him. Gina was already waking up. Sighing, Lee motioned for the guard to unlock the cell. There was a lot of planning to do if he didn't want his new girlfriend to end up out an airlock.

Sometimes he really wondered why he invited this kind of drama into his life.


End file.
